A Trip to Town
Sevgi made his way outside, the door creaked louder than before in the cool morning air. The sun still had not risen but it's light was beginning to lighten the night sky; the moon was new in the sky and was not visible. Sevgi walked to the young boy with a key and a warm cup of tea, still fearing an attack but he was determined to make peace. The boy sat awake against the fence, his temper has been subdued by the cold air and wet mud. Sevgi stopped further down the fence, just out of reach, and place the tea on a post. "Here. Drink it, it will help sooth your ails." He stared at the boy and waited patiently but received no response. "Come now." Sevgi took a step closer and the boy turned his body to face him yet did not look at him. Sevgi extended the key to him, "Can a savage and a Shepard not break bread together? Consider it an apology for the crack on the head." The boy looked up connecting his worn, bloodshot eyes with Sevgi's. In that moment Sevgi truly saw the boy for who he was; someone who was lost and afraid. The boy took the key slowly and unshackled his leg. "Come, I will make you some breakfast, you look like you could use a good meal. Sevgi helped him to his feet with a smile, "Do not forget your tea," Sevgi leaned in close and looked over each shoulder as if someone might be listening, "I put some wine in it." He nudged the boy with his elbow and turned back for the house. The boy smiled and followed, careful not to spill his tea. The door's creak broke the silence as they made their way inside. The sheep were scurrying about already and upon seeing the boy they broke into a frenzy. "Calm yourselves everyone!" Sevgi shouted over bleats and baas, "It was a misunderstanding, 'To end a life where there is no warrant is the greatest of sins against Us.'" Byron baaed loud over top of the others. "Must I recite the whole chapter for you Byron?! 'No man shall die by the Judge or Jury; Unless their crime was Murder first.' Has he killed?" The boy held himself in agony at the mention of Murder. "Nay! All in this home still breath and with the grace of the Seven we shall for many years." Sevgi finished and moved to his dining table, pushing sheep out of his way. "Sit." He motioned to the table. The boy recovered and walked over to take a seat; Johun walked behind him. "I am afraid our skirmish last night did end with one casualty." Sevgi grabbed a wine-soaked loaf of bread from the floor, "Our stores are running a little scarce this morning." He dropped the bread then walked over to take a seat in his fireplace chair. "Savor your drink my strange friend," He said pouring the last drops of wine into his cup, "tis the last of our drink as well." The boy sipped happily, even a small amount felt refreshing, it had been weeks since he had drank anything other than dirty mud water. Sevgi grabbed his sojourn from the table and began thumbing through it. "We will go to town after our morning read; I have wool to trade and honestly could not last long with this bunch without a proper drink." He looked out to his sheep, they had relaxed and gathered around him, with the exception of Johun who eyed the boy's fingers with heavy interest. The boy remained silent as the drink cooled his pain and drowned out the voice screaming in his head. "I believe we left off at...I Má Núora..." The sheep bleated out in a chorus of protest, Sevgi looked at them disappointed. "It is not that long..." The sheep continued to holler and Byron began a continuous "BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" over top of the others; the boy grabbed his ears and held his head against the table. "Alright! Alright we will skip it!' The chorus stopped. "But The father of Order is not pleased with your lack of commitment." He thumbed through the Sojourn again to the next chapter, however his chapter 8 was missing. "Sadly we must skip the next chapter as well..." He looked down to Ashler, "and we all remember why." Ashler had a hefty appetite at times. "I shall just have to find a copy that does have it when we go to town. Alright, The Ninth Chapter of The Holy Sojourn of Dane: I Má Lerya." The boy looked on in wonder, forgetting even about the drink he held in his hand. "'And we stayed in the palace of Ruukina for three years long until Johun came to me and said, “My brother Dane, is it not the nature of man for them to decide their place in this world?'" --- The boy and Sevgi made their way into the local town, about an hour ride from Sevgi's mountain home. The small wagon they road was rocked along slowly by the single horse Sevgi owned; It was an old mare but loyal and stall worth. The boy sat beside Sevgi who was spouting stories about this place and that, pointing out 'famous spots' he had defecated or lost consciousness or both. "...Ah what a night that was. I tell ya boy it took me months to remove the stench from my tunic." He laughed to himself in recollection then looked to the boy, "You do not say much do you?" The boy looked to him but still said nothing. "That is alright. No need to speak, in fact when we make it to town I request that you try and avoid these people; I do not much care for them to know my business up in the mountains. And I would ''especially ''prefer they not know how I came to be in the company of a Valley Savage." The boy nodded in agreement although the term 'Valley Savage' hit him a little hard. The duo shopped around, traded their goods and resupplied fairly quickly. The wagon was loaded within an hour with wine, meats and veggies and more wine, with a dash of tobacco and sugared treats (Sevgi had a sweet tooth). All in all it looked like nice package of happiness. Sevgi gazed at the supplies, "All in all I would say this is a mighty fine package of happiness! Do you not agree?" The boy looked over the supplies with equal joy and nodded in agreement. "Well I would say that we have time for drink." Sevgi motioned to the small watering hole next to the market. "Yes. A drink would be nice." The boy smiled at Sevgi and Sevgi laughed heartily, "My my, you do not say much boy but when you do I like it!" He threw his arm over the boy's shoulder and walked them to the tavern. "Like I said, one drink and we will head back..." --- The Next Day: The smell of a fresh rain flowed into Sevgi's aching head as he lay on his back in the woods. He attempted to open his eyes but even the soft light of the overcast sky split his head in two. He felt his body soaked, in what he hoped was water and his hands gripped soft grass beneath his body. After a time he struggled up to his elbows and opened his eyes to a troubling sight: The boy lay a few steps away from him in a bush, face down and was dressed in a servant girl's robes. Sevgi's gaze then settle on himself and found he was clothed, also in a woman's dress. He fell back and looked up at the sky and breathed out a deep sigh, "Oh shit, not again..." Previous Chapter What kind of animal is this? Next Chapter Lost in the WildernessCategory:Character lore